MAY/JUNE 2025

“News happens everywhere. Can you find some? For this month’s contest, put on your reporter’s hat and write a story sharing big news. New neighbors moving in? Mangoes for lunch? Ants on the move? Think up a catchy title and write a story of 150 words or fewer. We’ll print some of the most newsworthy in an upcoming issue or online.”

Contest rules:

1. Your child’s contest entry must be their very own work. Ideas and words should not be copied.
2. Be sure to include your child’s name, age, and address on your entry.
3. Only one entry per person, please.
4. If you want your child’s work returned, please help them enclose an addressed, stamped envelope.
5. Your child’s entry must be signed or emailed by yourself or another parent or legal guardian, saying it’s their own work and that no one helped them, and that ASK has permission to publish their work in print and online.
6. For information on the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act, see the Privacy Policy page at cricketmedia.com.
7. Email a photo or scan of your child’s artwork to: ask@cricketmedia.com. Entries must be emailed by June 30, 2025.
8. We will publish the winning entries in an upcoming issue of ASK.

MAY/JUNE 2025

“Ever since the buggies came face to face with a cloud with a face, they’ve had rain on the brain. For this month’s contest, everybuggy wants to read your best story about the weather.

Will you write about a severe storm that won’t stop, wild wind that blows your characters off course, thick fog that hides a dark secret, or fun sun that leaves behind a nasty burn? Perhaps you’ll be inspired by a real-life event, such as pilot William Rankin’s harrowing free fall through thunder and lightning in ‘In the Clouds.’ Or maybe the weather will take on mythical proportions, like how in ‘Tansen’s Gift’ a song to bring rain saves a musician’s life.

Your plot may be serious, such as a big game being postponed due to lightning. Or you might choose something silly, like a day when it truly rains cats and dogs. Whether the weather in your story is realistic and relatable or magical and mysterious and whether your characters are on cloud nine or have the rainy-day blues, everybuggy in Cricket Country popped on their ponchos to check the mailbox. Come rain or shine, send your best story—of 350 words or fewer, please—about weather woes.”

Contest rules:

1. Your child’s contest entry must be their very own original work. Ideas and words should not be copied.
2. Your child’s entry must be signed by yourself or another parent or guardian, stating that it is their own work, that no help was given,
   and that CRICKET has permission to publish it in the magazine and on our website.
3. Be sure to include your child’s name, age, and full address on their entry.
4. Only one entry per person, please.
5. If you want their work returned, enclose an addressed, stamped envelope for each entry.
6. Your child’s entry must be received by June 25, 2025.
7. Send entries to cricket@cricketmedia.com
8. We will publish winning entries in an upcoming issue of CRICKET.

MAY/JUNE 2025

“In ‘Look! No Hands!’ you learned about what goes in to designing the speediest, twistiest, safest rollercoasters imaginable. Now’s your chance to design rollercoaster of your very own. What is it called? What does it look like? How fast, high, or far does it go? Draw us a picture of your dream rollercoaster, and we’ll open the gates to the MUSE Theme Park in a future issue.”

Contest rules:

MAY/JUNE 2025

“Draw a picture of the best pet.”

Here are the only rules:

1. Your child’s entry must be signed by yourself, another parent, or legal guardian, authorizing its publication in print and/or online and saying it’s their own idea.
2. Be sure to include your child’s complete name, age, and address.
3. Your child’s entry must arrive by June 25, 2025. We will publish our favorites in an upcoming issue of SPIDER.

Email your child’s entry to spider@cricketmedia.com.